


Prove It

by CanYouJustReallyNot



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Original Character(s), Pokemon Journey, Pokemon Trainers, Realistic Pokemon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-18 07:35:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28739607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CanYouJustReallyNot/pseuds/CanYouJustReallyNot
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

I’ve been trying to prove myself to everyone ever since I was born.

When I was five I got laughed at by my peers because I couldn’t throw rocks as far as them. When I got home, I practiced throwing all night using a ping pong ball. The very next day I beat all of them.

When I was eight my parents told me I couldn’t swim with Rhino, our pet Spheal, at the local pond because it could be dangerous with all the other pokemon in there. While they weren’t looking, I dove headfirst into that pond.

When I was eleven, my brother started his badge quest. Before he left, he jokingly told me that once he came back, we would have a pokemon fight to see who was better. I took it seriously and started training Rhino every day.

The catch with all of these incidents was that something seemed to go off plan. Even if I beat all my peers in a throwing competition using a ping pong ball, it didn’t count because everyone else was using rocks. So I traded my ping pong ball with a rock, but it turned out that rocks were much heavier than ping pong balls. Suffice to say, I didn’t fare any better than yesterday. As I was swimming in the pond with Rhino when my parents were looking away, a rogue Chinchou started pulling me down. Rhino quickly noticed and started pulling me up to no avail. Eventually, my dad noticed and dove into the water. He pulled me up with Rhinos help just in the nick of time before I drowned. When my brother came back a year later, he was surprised that I had kept his joke to heart. He reluctantly agreed to a fight. When I lost to his first pokemon, I didn’t talk to him for a week.

It feels like my whole life has been a big joke for everyone to examine and laugh at. Even my name, Jermy, feels like a jest.

The way my name turned out, as explained by my parents, was an accident. My mom and dad were both writing down possible name choices for me, and they had both liked the name Jeremy. My brother, who was three at the time, took the paper from my parents and started reading the names aloud. When he came to Jeremy, he said it as Jermy, and my parents instantly liked that name even more. What prompted them to like that name, I don’t know. I can’t know now even if I wanted to, because they’re dead.


	2. Chapter 2

While I was growing up, all my schoolmates affectionately called me Germ. Ok, so maybe not affectionately, but the nickname stuck with everyone.

It all started at my school when Harley came up to me one day during lunch in third grade. My school was just an unassuming normal one in New Bark Town, Johto, but little did I know, the events that would happen throughout the day would lead me on a dark path. 

I was sitting with my friend Adrian while eating a peanut butter chocolate chip sandwich. Adrian's mom forgot to pack his lunch, and as a consequence, he had nothing to eat that day. I offered him half of my chip bag, but when he asked for my sandwich, I declined. Peanut butter chocolate chip sandwiches were my favorite food, and I would not sacrifice any of it, even for my friend. I was about to start eating my sandwich when Harley walked up to me.

“Hey, Wormy!” he exclaimed.

Adrian cut in. “It’s Jermy- “

“I know, snivel face! It was clearly a joke!”

“Oh, sorry…”

Harley sneered. “And don’t ever interrupt me when I’m making an important announcement!”

Adrian looked down. 

At this point, most of the people in the cafeteria had turned our way to see what the commotion was. Harley turned from Adrian to look back at me as he smiled devilishly. “I heard you got your first pokemon!”

It was true. A few weeks back our family bought a Spheal to celebrate my eighth birthday. Spheal was more like the family pet, but I was the one who mostly took care of it. Because of that, I considered him mine, so I was the one who named him Rhino. 

Harley had never picked on me before, so I started stammering, knowing that Harley was up to no good. “Ye- yeah? What’s it to you?”

He pointed at me, and shouted, “I challenge you to a pokemon fight!”

Some people gasped. Other people who weren’t paying attention now were. Pokemon fights were very rare to see as children, even more rarer to see children do it themselves. The whole cafeteria was now basically quiet, heads turned our way. Everyone was keenly watching and listening.

Because of this, I started stammering some more. “ We - well, I mean, I only got him a few weeks ago, he might not be up for a batt-”

“So you’re saying you’re gonna wimp out of a fight?”

There were a few snickers to be heard. And that was what turned on my pride.

I stood up and stared at him angrily. My voice, which was previously stammering, was now full of confidence. “Of course not, I’ll take you on any day!”. It was so astounding to see how my attitude could change so quickly when my pride got involved.

Harley grinned evilly at me. “That’s what I thought! And also, there's something I forgot to tell you”. As he said that, he pulled out a sock that looked like it was smothered with soot and ash. “The losers gotta lick this dirty sock!” As soon as he said that, the audience went dead silent. All of them slowly turned their heads to look at me, to see what I had to say. “You agree to this? Or are ya gonna wimp out now?”

My conscience told me this was a very bad idea, but my pride won. It always did. “Yeah, I agree to this!” I snapped at him. The audience erupted into frantic murmuring.

Adrian suddenly whispered to me, “Jermy, this doesn’t seem to be a good idea. Harley’s had his pokemon for much longer than you, and he’s probably trained it really hard-”

“HEY! Snivelly! Stop trying to change his mind!”. Harley grinned maniacally as he slowly turned to me. It looked like his face was going to crack from smiling too much until he loosened up a bit. “Six pm, today at Pikipek Park! That goes for everyone who wants to watch!”

And with that, Harley grabbed my sandwich, and walked away, smugly munching on it.


	3. Chapter 3

To say I was fuming by the time I had gotten back home was lightly putting it. My pride was shaken. It wouldn’t rest until it got another shot at the guy who had shaken it. And that meant I had to beat Harley at his own game.

I figured my parents would be ok with me using Rhino for the bet. After all, it would be experience for when I would later became a pokemon trainer. As it turns out, I was very wrong.

“What do you mean I can’t use Rhino?” I pouted at my mom.

“What do you think it means?”, my mom asked while cooking some food over the stove.

“But you let Bundy use him for battling!”

“Your big brother was using him for practice, not for bets”, she replied sternly. Then she sighed. She crouched down to my height, ruffled my hair, and said, “This has to be a learning experience for you, ok?”

“But mom, everyone was watching! If I had said no, people would have started laughing at me and calling me a wimp!”

“You shouldn’t care about what other people say. It doesn’t affect you in the slightest”, She pointed out as she stood up and started cooking food again.

“Yes it does!”, I pouted again.

“How?”

“Everyone’s gonna be mean to me!”

“Are you sure that’s not an exaggeration? Also if someone is mean to you, you should tell your teacher.” She sighed, putting her hand on the bridge of her nose. “Maybe we should come to school and see if we can talk to the teachers and help stop this nonsense.”

“But mom! Then I’ll be called a tattle-tale and everyone will be more mean to me!”

She looked at me sternly. “Are you sure you can take care of yourself at school?”

“Yeah, I can!” I replied earnestly, even making puppy dog eyes.

She sighed. “Fine. If you agree to not go through with your bet, then I won’t come to school. Deal?”

I weighed the options in my head. Finally, I sighed. “Deal” I replied back.

Little did my mom know, I wasn’t going to uphold my end of the deal.


	4. Chapter 4

Rhino looked at me curiously as I waited in my room. Everything was dark as the lights were out and the blinds were shut. I turned to my clock. The time was 5:40, and I had to sneak out of the house to be at Pikipek Park by six.

I had explained everything to Rhino. I didn’t know if he understood me, nonetheless if he would even win the battle, but I wasn’t going to back down this far into a bet. Rhino didn’t have a pokeball, so I was going to have to hold him as I sneaked out of the house.

I heard my mom walking around the corner, and my dad was in the living room watching TV. My brother was in the room next to mine, but he had his door shut. I had told all of them that I was tired and going to bed early, to which my mom became suspicious, but she didn’t question further. As a failsafe, I had put a bunch of pillows under my blanket to look like I was sleeping if she checked while I was gone. For Rhino, his alibi was that he was at the pond playing, the same pond that I had dove headfirst into while my parents were looking away a week back.

Suddenly I heard my mom stop at my door. I dove headfirst into the blanket, with Rhino in my arms. I panicked when he let out a squeal in surprise, but thankfully it was muffled under the blankets. As my mom opened the door, my heart started racing. She looked around my room and slowly started walking up to me. My heart pace quickened, and Rhino, sensing something was amiss, stiffened up. She only had to walk a few feet forward and she would see Rhino under the blankets in my arms. I was surely going to get caught.

“Anne!” My dad called out. “The show’s starting!”

My mom stopped where she was and replied, “Ok, coming!”. She took one last look at me. Satisfied, she turned around and walked out of my room, shutting the door. I waited until I heard her sit on the creaky couch in the living room till I got out of my bed.

“Alright Rhino, let's go”, I whispered to him.

“Sphea?”

“Don’t know what you’re saying, but yes.”

As I carried him in my arms, I opened the door. I cringed as my door creaked open, fearing that someone would hear. I paused, carefully hearing for any signs of movement.

I heard none. Good.

I carefully closed the door with one hand, my other hand carrying Rhino. From there, it was a straight shot to the door that led out of the house. I tiptoed to the door, looking at Rhino to make sure he wouldn’t fall out of my hands. I looked up at the door, which was a mere few feet away. Then something caught my attention that scared the wits out of me.

My brother was standing by the door, his hands crossed with a stern look.

I was so surprised that I slipped and fell to the ground with a large thud.


	5. Chapter 5

As I hit the ground, Rhino let out a squeal. My body started instantly protesting with an ache, but that wasn’t what I was thinking about. My parents were going to find out that I was going through with the bet, and when they did, my mom would decide to go to my teachers about the situation. I would be branded as a tattle-tale and an outlaw. 

“Who’s there?”, my dad called out pausing the TV.

And then something surprising happened.

“It was just me, I slipped”, Bundy called back. I stared at him in amazement. Me and my brother didn’t have the best relationship. I had always hated him for the stupid name he gave me, and so he just hated me back. We both usually didn’t get along unless we worked for a common cause, and getting Rhino was actually an example of that. I wanted to get a pokemon for my eighth birthday, but my parents said that getting a pokemon at such a young age could be dangerous. It turned out that Bundy also wanted a pokemon, so we both aligned forces. My parents were so surprised that we were actually working together that they got a pokemon. They got a Spheal, or as I named him, Rhino. But my brother's help usually didn’t extend to helping me get what I wanted if it didn’t align with his interests, and vice versa. 

“Are you hurt?”, my mom called out.

“No, I’m good. You can go back to watching TV”, Bundy replied.

The TV clicked back on, and I shakily stood up, checking Rhino if he had gotten hurt. Rhino looked just fine, if not a little surprised. My brother put a finger over his mouth and slowly opened the front door. I slowly walked out, and my brother walked out with me and closed the door.

“Why?” I hissed at him. There was probably a catch to him helping me. 

“Because I want to get revenge”, Bundy said as he glared at me. “Did you forget?”. I then realized what he was talking about.

Bundy and my parents had a big argument about him starting his badge quest. I didn't really know what a badge quest was, but I knew it included going on a pokemon journey, which Bundy wanted. He was 11 and of age to start, but my parents didn't let him go. They argued that it was too dangerous to go at such a young age, while Bundy argued that all of his friends were going so he should be able to go as well. Bundy even considered running away at one point, but my parents reminded him that to officially participate in the badge quest, they had to sign a form to get him a license. At this, Bundy realized he couldn't do anything, and in anger was now secretly "taking revenge" on our parents whenever he could. 

“Well go on then”, Bundy said irritatedly, interrupting my train of thought. “I didn’t do all that just for you to miss your appointment.”

“Don’t tell me what to do, Bundy” I snapped back, my pride irritated that the person who saved me was a narcissistic loser. In my arms, Rhino squeaked at him, trying to imitate me.

I turned around and started walking briskly to Pikipek Park, not knowing what awaited me.


	6. Chapter 6

As I arrived at Pikipek Park, I noticed a crowd by the swings.

“Hey! He’s here!”, One person shouted.

People started noticing me, and the crowd dispersed a little. As I looked around, I noticed most of the people in the crowd were from my grade, but some people had brought their little sisters and brothers as well. Rhino, who was still sitting in my arms, looked around, curious to why there were so many people. In the middle of the crowd was Harley, sitting on a swing. When he saw me he flashed his signature evil smile and got up.

“Hey, Wormy! You were a few minutes late! I thought you were gonna sissy out!”

His eyes lowered down to Rhino, and he started laughing. “That’s what you’re gonna fight me with?” A few people snickered, and again, it was like a switch was turned on for my pride. Seeing the crowd, I had felt a little bit nervous but my pride reminded me of what I needed to focus on. 

“Rhino can probably beat whatever your stupid pokemon is!”

“Oh yeah? Then let’s see!”

He took out his pokeball and flashed it at everyone. He then threw it on the ground, a tiny flash erupting as he did so. What came out was a little steel person who had knives on his body: A Pawniard. People started murmuring in amazement, but Rhino was a totally different story. He hopped out of my arms and rolled behind my legs, in obvious fear.

“Rhino!” I half-shouted, half-hissed. “You gotta fight!”

Harley just laughed. “So is that the thing that’s gonna beat my pokemon? Might as well give up now and lick the sock.”

“No! I won’t give up!” I snarled at him. “Rhino! Get back in front of me! NOW!”

People, now realizing what was happening, started laughing as well. The Pawniard, even with its expressionless face, was starting to look amused. My patience was dwindling fast. I crouched down, picked Rhino up, and put him in front of me. He just rolled right back.

This just caused everyone to laugh even harder.

I gritted my teeth and again crouched down to Rhino. “You HAVE to go fight!” I said while pointing my hand at the Pawniard. I pushed him towards the Pawniard, but he rolled right back again.

Harley was the one who was laughing the loudest. “Maybe you weren’t gonna sissy out but your pokemon sure did!” He then sighed in amusement and yelled “Pawniard! Metal Claw!”

Pawniard, seemingly alert for a command, ran lightning fast to Rhino, making me fall down in the process, and used his arm blades in a scissor motion. Rhino squealed loudly as some of his blubber got cut off. That was when I came to my senses. 

“No! Stop! I forfeit!” I cried out. Harley sneered.

“That’s what I thought.” As I was cradling Rhino in my arms, he came up to me and dropped the sock on the ground. “Lick the sock.”

My face reddened. I considered bolting out but I had made a deal. I took the sock, and up close, I could see how grimy it was. 

“Lick it!” Harley commanded, with his signature smile.

I hesitantly put my tongue out and licked it. It tasted so repulsive that I doubled over and started coughing. 

“Ya like those germs don’t ya? Why don’t you become one, you Germ?”

Someone started chanting. “Germ. Germ. Germ.” More people joined in, and soon a chorus of people were saying it.

My face reddened even more, and tears pricked at my eyes. I scooped Rhino up and bolted out of there.


	7. Chapter 7

I didn’t know how far I ran, but I ran hard, tears dripping from my eyes. My mind wouldn’t stop replaying the events that had just happened. Rhino was still injured in my arms, and I didn’t know what to do now. I suddenly tripped and fell, Rhino falling out of my arms as I did. I hit the sidewalk hard, earning myself a bloody scrape on my arm. At this point, the tears started pouring out of my eyes in a mixture of embarrassment and pain. I curved up into a ball and started crying, with no one to hear, no one to comfort me, and no one to say that it wasn’t my fault.

I sat there for god knows how long until I felt a little rub against my arms. I looked up and saw Rhino, looking at me with concern. I smiled at him.

“You did your best. I’m sorry for what I put you through”

Spheal just kept looking at me with more concern. After closer inspection, I figured out that other than the noticeable fact that some of his blubber was missing on his left side, he didn’t look like he was in pain. I sighed.

“Pull yourself together Jermy, you have to figure out what to do next,” I told myself. If I showed up at my house with Spheal looking noticeably injured, then it wasn’t going to be good for me. I needed to figure out a plan of action quickly, because the sun was setting and soon my mom would go into my room to call me for dinner, just to find out that I was gone. I sat there and thought, absentmindedly rubbing Rhino who looked less concerned now that I was giving him some attention. As I thought, my thinking drifted to Adrian.

Where was he the whole time? Why didn’t he show up at Pikipek Park? Why didn’t he come there and support me? My anger started rising. Finally, I came to a decision. I was going to go to Adrian's house and make him help me fix Rhino.


	8. Chapter 8

As I was marching to Adrian’s house with Rhino in my arms, from a distance it looked like there was a person sitting against the fence surrounding the house. As I got closer, I realized it was Adrian himself. My curiosity peaked, but I didn’t stop.

As I got even closer to him, I started stomping my feet to announce my presence. He looked up at me, his eyes looking teary-eyed from crying. After looking at my angry expression, his eyes widened in fear.

“Wait, no, Jermy-”

“WHERE WERE YOU??” I shouted at him, kicking the dirt on the ground as I did.

“I can expla-”

But at this point, I didn’t want an explanation. My anger blew out full force.

“I was SITTING there looking like a BIG FOOL! Everyone was LAUGHING AT ME!” I started yelling at him. “And YOU weren't even THERE to BACK. ME. UP!”

Adrian looked terrified with tears coming out of his eyes while I glowered over him. Rhino, trying to follow my lead, glared at him as well. I huffed at him.

“You really are a snivel face,” I shot at him. Adrian sniffed and looked down. “Why are you even out here?” Adrian just kept looking down, his face red. “Answer me!” I yelled at him.

Adrian looked up at me again. “ We- well I tried to ma- make it,” he hiccuped, more tears coming down from his face. “Bu- but I got into a- an argument wi- with my parents. A - as a punishment, they ki- kicked me out of the house. By th- that time I was t- too late to come”. By the end of his explanation, he was crying hard.

I glared at him. “What type of punishment is that?” I spat at him. He just kept crying in response. This started to unsettle Rhino, who was now starting to look a little bit concerned for Adrian. I, on the other hand, was unfazed. 

“Well, that doesn’t matter,” I went on. “Since you didn’t help me out then, you’re gonna help me out NOW. So STOP CRYING!”

Adrian stiffened up when I enunciated my words and quieted down a bit. I held out Rhino, who jumped up in surprise at being moved. Adrian looked at Rhino.

“Wh- what happened to his side?”

“Harley got him, that’s what!”

“Well, um, what am I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know, do something! I wasn’t even supposed to be at this stupid bet thing, and if my parents find out I went and I got Rhino hurt, they’re gonna freak out!”

Adrian sniffed. “But I dunno what to do-”

“FIGURE IT OUT!”

Adrian looked like he was going to cry again. “May- maybe we could get a potion, but I dunno how mu- much that’s gonna help, and I dunno anyone who has that and the shop is in th- the next city so I dunno how we- we’re gonna get there fa- fast enough-”

As Adrian kept rambling, I started getting more and more frustrated. Time was running out, and we were getting nowhere. Suddenly, I snapped. 

“You know what Adrian? You’re no help. You’re no help! You’re no help, and you’re not a good friend either! So I’m gonna go now and try to do something that’s actually helpful! Goodbye!”

I stalked off, leaving Adrian to cry again as Rhino peeked out of my arms back at Adrian.


End file.
